Everything we know about Mitsubishi’s EV coming to Australia in 2026

Mitsubishi’s first mainstream electric car for Australia is inching nearer to going into production in Taiwan, and native Mitsubishi engineers are being build to work to make certain the EV drives accurately on Aussie roads.

Expected to originate in Australia within the 2nd half of of 2026, the upcoming battery electric car (BEV) is being constructed in Taiwan by a subsidiary of tech giant Foxconn, with rebadging and restyling by Mitsubishi.

The as-but unnamed Mitsubishi EV is a tiny, lifted hatchback and is anticipated to take on the likes of the MG4, BYD Atto 3, and Kia EV3 within the Australian market.

Its unusual EV has a truly noteworthy feature to play in offsetting the emissions of Mitsubishi’s favorite devices, including the Triton diesel ute and petrol versions of the Outlander midsize SUV, which will be penalised below Australia’s Original Automobile Emissions Customary (NVES) criminal pointers.

MG4-rivalling specs anticipated for Mitsubishi EV

The electrical Mitsubishi is broadly anticipated to be in step with the Foxtron Mannequin B, which rides on a 2800mm wheelbase and is 4300mm long, 1865mm huge and, at 1530mm, is a little taller than an MG4 but no longer an outright SUV. Foxtron is a subsidiary of Foxconn.

If it’s in step with the Mannequin B, the Mitsubishi will trudge Foxtron’s 400-volt MIH skateboard with a single rear motor making 170kW, whereas an anticipated 60kWh LFP battery will provide 450km differ (WLTP) at consumption of spherical 13.3kWh/100km.

To stimulate question in an already-tight EV market in Australia, the Mitsubishi BEV will need no longer handiest first rate specs, but moreover a stamp near that of the favored MG4, which funds about $43,000 driveaway with its mid-tier 64kWh battery.

Position to play in offsetting NVES penalties for Mitsubishi

Mitsubishi Australia chief govt Shaun Westcott instructed Chasing Automobiles at the originate of the facelifted Outlander that the Japanese ticket expects producers as a change to “cop significant penalties” below NVES, partially on story of Australian prospects are no longer having a ogle for ‘satisfactory’ EVs.

“It doesn’t topic who that you might presumably effectively be. Every ticket has to quilt the worth of the penalty to outlive. If prospects are handiest having a ogle for single-digit EV sales [under 10% of total car sales], which methodology the vast majority of oldsters within the market are having a ogle for either some create of PHEV or ICE engine,” Westcott said.

Quiet, despite that look for, Mitsubishi Australia silent needs to expand its piece of PHEV sales (basically by dating extra prospects to the Outlander PHEV) and BEV sales (currently zero) in uncover to protect far from mounting fines below NVES, which gets tougher from 2026.

Taiwan-constructed EV plot to be tuned in Australia

That’s where the Foxconn-sourced BEV comes into play for Mitsubishi.

“Now we had been engaged on the Foxconn car, the beefy EV out at the demolish of 2026,” said Bruce Hampel, MMAL’s frequent manager of product approach, confirming that Foxconn engineers had been making an try out a aggressive plot of BEVs on Australian roads and at the Lang Lang proving ground in Victoria.

That work has been led by Tony Dorrington, product approach manager at Mitsubishi Australia. At the initiative of Mitsubishi head attach of job in Japan, the ticket no longer too long within the past re-established its accelerate and handling tuning team that beforehand worked on 380s and Magnas.

As effectively as adjusting the suspension and guidance of the facelifted Outlander SUV, the team is now making ready to work on the BEV mannequin with Dorrington telling Chasing Automobiles prototypes will arrive in Australia for tuning work rapidly.

“Tony and the (Foxconn) team had been utilizing the aggressive plot at Lang Lang and spending all of this week getting a plan of Australian road prerequisites in as many locations as imaginable,” said Hampel.

At the attend of the scenes, Mitsubishi and Foxtron signed an settlement in May presumably perchance honest this year locking in upright-hand drive production of the BEV mannequin for Australia and Original Zealand. A originate in our market within the 2nd half of of 2026 used to be namely talked about within the doc.

“Now we possess a (BEV) product. We are in a position to raise it to market after we mediate the market is ready to red meat up that product,” Mitsubishi Australia chief Shaun Westcott said. “It needs to be financially viable and seemingly.”

It’s far imaginable Mitsubishi will gain skinny margins on the BEV in uncover to promote extra examples whereas banking an NVES credit score on every sale, helping Mitsubishi to continue selling extra diesel Tritons amongst assorted autos.